Building/Contents insurance for house near a river prone to flooding.

upallnighteatingcheese

We are moving into a new house soon, and although it's a really nice place it does have a river at the bottom of the garden.

The river is about 10 feet below the garden wall, then the garden is about is about 30 feet long, and then because the house is on a slope the cellar sits level with the garden and the house ground floor starts about 8 feet above that.

I did a few website comparison quotes for buildings and contents insurance today and rang around a few of the bigger names and basically we have been turned down by them all, or priced so steeply to make it impossible - the cheapest so far being £108 a month!

Now the river has been known to flood in the past during heavy storms so all the surrounding postcodes are probably being flagged by the insurance companies based on this.

The thing is, we paid the local council for a flood report on the property, and the last recorded flooding in that house was 30 years ago.
On top of that, there was a multi million pound flood prevention project completed 2 years ago in the area to drastically cut down the chances of flooding. The local council now say that the property could be at risk of flooding in a 1 in 200 year flood.
In fact when we called them they said "in the case of such a storm, it wouldn't just be you affected but half the city."

Does anyone have any advice on where to go from here? Are we best calling a broker to try and sort something out? We are due to complete on the house very soon and we really should have looked into this sooner.

my_names_dave

Your best bet is to phone a local broker who has access to the specialist markets. Unfortunately the weather in recent years has made a mess of the insurance market in general. You will get a policy, but from my experience of insuring people who live next to the Thames, you might not get flood cover.

Spikey1

Ha.....Newburn, Newcastle upon Tyne. Thanks for reminding me.I'll say no more than I spent many a long hour at that site and at surrounding properties.

That block was demolished in the end. A culmination of 3 bad storms in 2012...one of which was a 1 in 400 year occurrence. I doubt the guy on the top floor ever thought his property was at risk of flooding.

I sympathise with you. I don't think that comparison sites are the best place for you to shop for your cover.....they aren't built to consider 'special cases'. You need a broker who will consider the contents of the report you have acquired from the council.

You might also seek advice from The National Flood Forum...a great little charity organisation who offer guidance/advice to people affected by flooding. I believe that they can offer advice on insurance cover/premiums too. Try this link & good luck;

http://nationalfloodforum.org.uk/?page_id=36

System

If you really want the house just accept that you can't get flood cover and take your own precautions.
Make sure all wiring is high up.
Don't put expensive furniture downstairs.
Use rugs not fitted carpets.
Have storm boards available for the doors.

Assume that one day it will happen. Then if you still want the house for its other advantages, go ahead. You don't have to insure everything in life, just assess eventualities and balance risks.